Reflective Fabric and Manufacturing Method Thereof

ABSTRACT

A reflective fabric and a manufacturing method thereof are provided. The reflective fabric includes a plurality of warps, a plurality of wefts, and a plurality of reflective yarns. Each of the reflective yarns is arranged between the plurality of warps or the plurality of wefts, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps and the reflective yarns to form the reflective fabric.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a reflective fabric and a manufacturing method thereof, and more particularly to a reflective fabric having an anti-industrial washing effect and a manufacturing method thereof.

Description of the Prior Art

In night workplaces or workplaces with insufficient light, workers usually wear reflective vests with reflective strips. When vehicles pass nearby, drivers can see the workers by means of reflection of vehicle lamp light by the reflective strips, so as to prevent accidents and protect personal safety of the workers. However, such type of reflective vests, reflective belts or fabrics are post-processed with such as reflective thermal films, reflective character films, reflective plastic films or reflective inks, and workwear made by the above means has standardized appearances and can be worn only at workplaces instead of also being worn as ordinary clothes. Workers usually wear their own casual clothes and then put on this type of reflective vests on the outside after arriving at workplaces. Further, the reflective belts of such type of reflective vests are easily attached by grease and stains from environments where such type of workwear are worn, and industrial washing is often used for cleaning. Because industrial washing has higher washing temperatures than those of household washing, the reflective effect decreases as the number of times of washing increases, hence losing the function of being reflective. Therefore, improvement needs to be made.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a reflective fabric having an anti-industrial washing effect.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a manufacturing method for a reflective fabric having an anti-industrial washing effect.

To achieve the objects above, a reflective fabric of the present invention includes a plurality of warps, a plurality of wefts and a plurality of reflective yarns. Each of the reflective yarns is arranged between the plurality of warps or the plurality of wefts, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps and the plurality of wefts to form the reflective fabric.

The present invention further provides a manufacturing method for a reflective fabric. The manufacturing method includes: providing a plurality of warps; providing a plurality of wefts; and providing a plurality of reflective yarns, wherein each of the reflective yarns is arranged between the plurality of warps or the plurality of wefts, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps and the reflective yarn to form the reflective fabric.

In the reflective fabric of the present invention, reflective yarns are added between warps or wefts. Since clothes made from the reflective fabric of the present invention look the same as ordinary clothes, and the reflection of light beams reflected by the reflective yarns in night environments or environments of poor vision allows workers wearing the clothes made from the reflective fabric of the present invention to be effectively seen, workers are provided with most fundamental guarantee with respect to personal safety. Meanwhile, clothes made from the reflective fabric of the present invention can be worn at work and can also be directly worn after work, and are suitable for any occasions, thus solving the issues of the prior art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a reflective fabric according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged schematic diagram of a part A in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of steps of a manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

For the Examiner to better understand the technical contents of the present invention, preferred embodiments are described below. Refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 for a reflective fabric according to an embodiment of the present invention, and an enlarged schematic diagram of a part A in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a reflective fabric 1 of the present invention includes a plurality of warps 10, a plurality of reflective yarns 20 and a plurality of wefts 30. The reflective yarns 20 are provided between the plurality of warps 10 or the plurality of wefts 30, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps 10 and the reflective yarn 20 to form the reflective fabric 1. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of reflective yarns 20 are distanced from one another by 0.5 cm to 30 cm. In this embodiment, the reflective yarns 20 are arranged at the warps 10; however, the present invention is not limited to such example, and the reflective yarns 20 can also be arranged at the wefts 30. According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the reflective fabric 1 is a woven fabric, the plurality of warps 10 and the plurality of wefts 30 can be natural fiber, man-made fiber or synthetic fiber, and the reflective yarns 20 are a commercial reflective yarn having an anti-industrial washing effect. The reflective yarns 20 of the present invention in overall occupy 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric 1 by weight. When the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention is illuminated by light beams (e.g., from vehicle lamps) at night, with the reflective yarns 20 provided, an individual wearing the reflective fabric 1 can be seen, thus ensuring the safety of workers in a workplace of poor lighting. Further, since the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention does not look significantly different from common fabrics, the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention can be worn as ordinary clothes and can be worn at workplaces such that workers do not need to change clothes after work, significantly enhancing practicability and convenience of the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention.

Further, the reflective fabric 1 can be easily attached with grease and stains in work environments where the reflective fabric 1 needs to be worn and industrial washing is required. As the reflective yarns 20 used by the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention has a feature of being capable of withstanding more than 50 times of industrial washing, the reflective yarns 20 used by the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention still has a function of being reflective even after numerous times of industrial washing, improving the durability of the reflective fabric 1 and solving the issue of the prior art in which reflection performance decreases as the number of times of washing increases.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of warps 10 include a first warp combination 11 and a second warp combination 12. As shown in FIG. 2, the reflective yarn 20 is arranged between the first warp combination 11 and the second warp combination 12 in part A, the first warp combination 11 is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged 18 times, the second warp combination 12 is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times or 3 times, and the color of the yarns of the first warp combination 11 is different from the color of the yarns of the second warp combination 12. In this embodiment, the color of the yarns of the first warp combination 11 is blue, the color of the yarns of the second warp combination 12 is white, and the reflective yarn 20 in overall occupies 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric 1 by weight.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of warps 10 are repeated for N times according to an arrangement order, where N is a natural number. The arrangement order is the first warp combination 11 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, the second warp combination 12 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times, the first warp combination 11 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, and the second warp combination 12 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 3 times, wherein the reflective yarn 20 is arranged between the N^(th) arrangement order and the (N+1)^(th) arrangement order. As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, the reflective yarn 20 is arranged between the 1^(st) (N=1) arrangement order and the 2^(nd) ((N+1)^(th)) arrangement order in the enlarged diagram of a part A, the color of the yarns of the first warp combination 11 is blue, the color of the yarns of the second warp combination 12 is white, and the reflective yarn 20 in overall occupies 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric 1 by weight.

Next, referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of steps of a manufacturing method for a reflective fabric of the present invention. Also referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, steps in FIG. 3 are sequentially described below.

In step S1: a plurality of warps are provided.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the plurality of warps 10 can be natural fiber, man-made fiber or synthetic fiber. Further, according to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of warps 10 include a first warp combination 11 and a second warp combination 12, the first warp combination 11 is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged 18 times, the second warp combination 12 is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times or 3 times, and the color of the yarns of the first warp combination 11 is different from the color of the yarns of the second warp combination 12. In this embodiment, the color of the yarns of the first warp combination 11 is blue, and the color of the yarns of the second warp combination 12 is white.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of warps 10 are repeated for N times according to an arrangement order, where N is a natural number. The arrangement order is the first warp combination 11 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, the second warp combination 12 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times, the first warp combination 11 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, and the second warp combination 12 including yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 3 times.

In step S2: a plurality of wefts are provided.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the plurality of wefts 30 can be natural fiber, man-made fiber or synthetic fiber.

In step S3, a plurality of reflective yarns are provided. Each reflective yarn is arranged between the plurality of warps or the plurality of wefts, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps and the plurality of wefts to form the reflective fabric.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the reflective yarns 20 are a commercial reflective yarn having an anti-industrial washing effect. As shown in FIG. 2, the reflective yarn 20 is arranged between the first warp combination 11 and the second warp combination 12 in part A; alternatively, when the plurality of warps 10 are repeated for N times according to the arrangement order described previously, the reflective yarn 20 is arranged between the N^(t) arrangement order and the (N+1)^(th) arrangement order. As shown in FIG. 2, the reflective yarn 20 is arranged between the 1^(st) (N=1) arrangement order and the 2^(nd) ((N+1)^(th)) arrangement order in the enlarged diagram of a part A.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the reflective fabric 1 is a woven fabric, and the reflective yarn 20 is arranged at the warps 10 in this embodiment; however, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the reflective yarn 20 can also be arranged at the wefts 30. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of reflective yarns 20 are distanced from one another by 0.5 cm to 30 cm. Further, in the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention, the reflective yarn 20 in overall occupy 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric 1 by weight. When the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention is illuminated by light beams (e.g., from vehicle lamps) at night, with the reflective yarn 20 provided, an individual wearing the reflective fabric 1 can be seen, thus ensuring the safety of workers in a workplace of poor lighting. Further, since the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention does not look significantly different from common fabrics, the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention can be worn as ordinary clothes and can be worn at workplaces such that workers do not need to change clothes after work, significantly enhancing practicability and convenience of the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention.

Further, the reflective fabric 1 can be easily attached with grease and stains in work environments where the reflective fabric 1 needs to be worn and industrial washing thus is required. As the reflective yarn 20 used by the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention has a feature of being capable of withstanding more than 50 times of industrial washing, the reflective yarn 20 used by the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention still has a function of being reflective even after numerous times of industrial washing, improving the durability of the reflective fabric 1.

In the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention, the reflective yarn 20 is added to the warps 10 or wefts 30. Since clothes made from the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention look the same as ordinary clothes, and the reflection of light beams reflected by the reflective yarn 20 in night environments or environments of poor vision allows workers wearing the clothes made from the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention to be effectively seen, workers are provided with most fundamental guarantee with respect to personal safety. Meanwhile, clothes made from the reflective fabric 1 of the present invention can be worn at work and can also be directly worn after work, and are suitable for any occasions, thus solving the issues of the prior art.

It should be noted that, the embodiments given above are examples for illustration purposes, and the scope of the claims are to be accorded with the appended claims and are not to be limited by the foregoing embodiments. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A reflective fabric, comprising: a plurality of warps; a plurality of wefts; and a plurality of reflective yarns, wherein each of the reflective yarns is arranged between the plurality of warps or the plurality of wefts, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps and the reflective yarn to form the reflective fabric.
 2. The reflective fabric according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of warps comprise a first warp combination and a second warp combination, and the reflective yarn is arranged between the first warp combination and the second warp combination.
 3. The reflective fabric according to claim 2, wherein the first warp combination is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, and the second warp combination is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times or 3 times.
 4. The reflective fabric according to claim 3, wherein the color of the yarns of the first warp combination is different from the color of the yarns of the second warp combination.
 5. The reflective fabric according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of reflective yarns occupy 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric by weight.
 6. The reflective fabric according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of reflective yarns are distanced from one another by 0.5 cm to 30 cm.
 7. The reflective fabric according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of warps are repeated by N times according to an arrangement order, where N is a natural number; the arrangement order is the first warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, then the second warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times, then the first warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, and finally the second warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 3 times.
 8. The reflective fabric according to claim 7, wherein the reflective yarn is arranged between the N^(th) arrangement order and the (N+1)^(th) arrangement order.
 9. The reflective fabric according to claim 8, wherein the color of the yarns of the first warp combination is different from the color of the yarns of the second warp combination.
 10. The reflective fabric according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of reflective yarns occupy 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric by weight.
 11. A manufacturing method for a reflective fabric, comprising: providing a plurality of warps; providing a plurality of wefts; and providing a plurality of reflective yarns, wherein each of the reflective yarns is arranged between the plurality of warps or the plurality of wefts, and is interleaved with the plurality of warps and the reflective yarn to form the reflective fabric.
 12. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 11, wherein the plurality of warps comprise a first warp combination and a second warp combination, and the reflective yarn is arranged between the first warp combination and the second warp combination.
 13. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 12, wherein the first warp combination is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, and the second warp combination is yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times or 3 times.
 14. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 13, wherein the color of the yarns of the first warp combination is different from the color of the yarns of the second warp combination.
 15. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 14, wherein the plurality of reflective yarns occupy 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric by weight.
 16. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 14, wherein the plurality of reflective yarns are distanced from one another by 0.5 cm to 30 cm.
 17. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 12, wherein the plurality of warps are repeated by N times according to an arrangement order, where N is a natural number; the arrangement order is the first warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, then the second warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 6 times, then the first warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 18 times, and finally the second warp combination comprising the yarns of a single color repeatedly arranged for 3 times.
 18. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 17, wherein the reflective yarn is arranged between the N^(th) arrangement order and the (N+1)^(th) arrangement order.
 19. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 8, wherein the color of the yarns of the first warp combination is different from the color of the yarns of the second warp combination.
 20. The manufacturing method for a reflective fabric according to claim 19, wherein the plurality of reflective yarns in overall occupy 1% to 25% of the reflective fabric by weight. 